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Gracious Death
Chapter 1 I leaned back in my chair, summer breeze blowing past. Edward, who was five, was playing in the bright green grass, lively kicking the ball across the ground as Skye taught him how to play soccer. I smiled, remembering when I was that age. Edward is very, very lucky, I thought, my parents would beat me up if I went outside, and especially if I hung out with...friends. Friends. Something I have not heard in a long time. I think about highschool. It's foggy in my mind, and I struggle to remember it. What was it like? Well, I wasn't very popular, for one thing...that is, until I met Lilith. I stayed with... Um... Kramer, for certain, perhaps. He worked with me at 935, but in a different location. Maxis, I think. Maybe. Schuster, Groph, and...oh yes! Sabine, Casella, and Alois! Senior year, and right after, 935. I bitterly bite my lip. 935. What an awful place. Xena sits right down next to me.ped in time." I admit. "What ever did happen to the other three, pops?" she asks. I blink. "Vho exactly?" I reply, confused. "Dempsey, Nikolai, and Takeo." Xena explains. "Vell...er, I don't know. I at least believe zey died, however, they might have escaped." I think for a moment, the squealing of happiness coming from Edward. "I don't vorry about it. Eizzer vay, zey vouldn't bozzer having revenge. Freedom is a price zey deserve." I remark, and relax again, closing my eyes dizzily, and fall into a peace-filled sleep. -Richtofen Chapter 2 Xena and Skye are out on another date. It's getting late. I tuck Edward in and sit by his bedside until I can hear his gentle snoring. I smile softly and leave, shutting the door behind me. But the moment I do, I don't hear anything. It's eerily quiet, the hallways dark. Ever since Moon, I HATE not hearing, or darkness, because that happened a lot, and I almost died, okay? So I creep back in through the doorway, peering in. "Edvard?" I near-silently call, walking back in. I pull the covers off.. Oh my. He's not there. My eyes widen. "Edvard! Zis is not a game!" I grab a phone, right when something grabs me. "Hello?" "Xena! Zhere's zomeone else in the house, I zink-" I'm cut off by a bloodcurdling scream. .::. "Papa? What the hell is going on?" I hiss. "Nein! Shtay avay!" he yells to something. I hear a punch, and then everything's eerily silent. "Listen up buttercup. We have your grandson and your father. You want him, you better come alone." a rough American voice snarls into the phone, and I hear footsteps, and Edward's teary crying. "Stop hurting him!" Edward is screaming. "Shut up, kid!" another hisses. "If you bring that Skye of yours, we'll make sure he'll be like his father. Permanently." "Dempshey! Lay your fingers off him!" my father yells, and through what I can hear, is thrashing violently. "Shut up, Rich." a heavy russian voice drunkly bumbles. Nikolai!? "Banzai!" Takeo yells, and can be heard dragging a thrashing Richtofen away. "We'll make every last one of those dirty 935's suffer!" Dempsey declared. "Xena! Xena!" Richtofen is screaming, and the phone turns off. "Skye! We have to go now." she growls. "What? We haven't eaten yet!" he groaned. "They took Edward." she said, trying not to show her tears. Skye grabbed her arm, and the two bolted from the resteraunt. .::. I felt the whip pierce my back again as the cloaked men snarled. Dempsey, Nikolai, and Takeo watched without words, choking in horror. "Hit him again! He, like all members of 935, should pay! Heck, we even ressurected some to keep the pain going!" A woman nearby struggled to move, the ropes tying her to a pole. "Stop it! Leave him alone!" she wailed angrily. I winced again, but didn't move as the tears jerked from my eyes. "Hit him again!" CRACK! Pain, stretching like fire, hit me again. I was almost certain I was bleeding. "Alright. Stop. Put him to work. We'll make sure to inject Voice Parasites into him to cause more pain later on." the cloaked man chuckled. They unleashed my ropes that were holding me down, and I look up to see Lilith. I run straight to her, hugging her. "Lilith!" I screech, holding her close. "Edvard!" she cries, and I try to hold on. They drag me away. "No! Please!" I'm screaming, losing control of my words. I smack a guy against the wall, until another hits me with an electric-powered gun in the arm. I can no longer feel it as I stumble down. "Edvard! Zomeone! Please!" Lilith is yelling, tears streaming through, before the door closes. I can no longer see anyone. I don't know what they're going to do with her, but I do know now that they've certainly ressurected her. Hope flares in my chest. A needle sinks into my numb arm in the darkness. "Guess what Richtofen? You're our supersoldier now. Our minion to play with, just like your little friends." I thrash violently, trying to free myself and get away, but I slowly stop resisting. Instead, now I want to help them. My mind wipes of everyone I once knew, and my inner self struggles to hold on, but now all I remember is serving my new master. "Yes sir." I say. They uncover my eyes. I stare into a mirror. Like everyone in this group, my eyes are now bright yellow. I'm dressed in my original work uniform for 935. I grin wickedly. "Vhat kind of torture do you vant me to do?" They hand me a whip. The voices return to my head. I am no longer Grandfather Edward, or Father. I'm Doctor Richtofen, bringer of your doom. Visions of torture dance in my head. "Vho's ze doctor's patient?" "Maxis." Chapter 3 I walk down the hallway, eyes narrow. Lilith stares at me. ...Of course I knew their names while I was being mind-controlled, reader, how else would I know who Maxis was? Maxis is tied to a post. "Edward! You're free? Untie me, please! We can be together again! Please, Edward! It's me!" she begs, getting down on her knees. I grin evilly. "Quiet, you ragamuffin, or I vill vhip you into shape." I joke with a maniacal laugh. By then, Lilith notices my yellow eyes and gasps. "No! They've turned you into one! Please! Try to remember me! I can help you!" she screamed. I crack my whip across her back quickly. Tears flood her eyes in pain. "I zaid, quiet! Dempshey, take her away." I ordered. Dempsey, who at the time, like the other three, had limited memories, briskly flinched, then grabbed her arm, dragging her towards the prisoner room. "I'm sorry this happened. He doesn't know who he is, literally." Dempsey whispered. "Ze voices and my boss are my only commanders, shwien!" I yell back after her. Maxis is sadly staring at me. "Richtofen, it's me!" he whispers hurriedly. "Yes, I know vho you are. You vere my tormenting boss vrom 935 vho vas greedy and vould not do my orders. And you vere dead. But now you're back. And you must pay." I reply with a sneer edging my tone. I feel like I should remember something about Maxis, but I don't. Two girls are pinned on the same pole. One has long, black hair, and intense brown eyes. The other girl has big, round blue eyes, and short blonde hair. She's staring at me, as if hoping I could see something in her. Again, at the time, I didn't. I didn't realise, reader, this was my little sister, An, as I had nicknamed her, because I was being...well...in a trance. Maxis bows his head to be whipped. But then I look above. There's a boy, hanging in a, er, large birdcage? He's calling to me. He has my hair color, dark brown, and his eyes...emerald. It hits me. It's Edward. I crouch in pain, head pulsing. This is my grandson. This is Edward. Edward's alive. Maxis was my friend. Antoinette! An was back, too! Samantha, even I miss her! Lilith! My god, she's alive again! My hand trembles, eyes starting to revert to normal. "That's it! Edward Richtofen, wake up! And help us!" Maxis hissed. I grab a lockpick, reaching to the cage, and briskly unlock it. I run straight to Nikolai and Takeo, and hit them with my whip in the back. "Zorry." They nod in thank you, collapsing on the ground. They would be fine. They're just changing back. Dempsey's already normal, and returns with Lilith, and....oh my. Kramer!? Schuster!? Groph!? I didn't know Kramer was still alive! Gone all these years. I can't help grinning. "Edvard, my, vhat a surprise!" Kramer remarks. "Good to zee you too, Kramer." I reply. Lilith hugs me tight. "We have to get out of here before the guards vake up!" she hisses. I grabbed my knife, Edward behind me and following me like a puppy. Lilith smiles and grabs his hand, gently speaking to him. He's grinning, too. I cut loose the rope tying the remaining three free, and we all grab a large van nearby, jumping in. Everyone buckles up, and I get drivers. I start the ignition, fiery dogs running towards us. Hellhounds! The tires screech as we rapidly drive away, dogs far behind us in about 5 minutes. We sigh in relief. We cannot stay at my house. Too small. I drive up next to Skye and Xena. "Vhat happened? Vhere have you been?" she yells to me. "Zat's not a vay to talk to zomeone vho just got mugged, whipped, and kidnapped, and freed your zon. Get in. Now." I argue. She rolls her eyes, and gets in. Her emerald eyes widen. "Mom!?" she cries, hugging her. Skye and Nikolai are locked in a glare. "Look, shtop it, Skye, ve have to get outta here. Ve have to leave Germany. Vor now, at least." I explain. I run inside, grabbing blankets and food, shoving them in the back, and stroking my V-Device. "You STILL have that?" Dempsey laughed. I threw it to him, and the Focusing Stone. "Long shtory, zhese are important. Takeo, hold ze Wunderwaffe DG-2. Zhere. Zanks." I replied, and hit the pedal. We drove off, on a dangerous adventure. Chapter 4 We stop at an old, old farm to rest in the car. Lilith lays her head onto my shoulder, and I wrap an arm around her waist. Instead of sleeping, I'm staring out the window. There's a shape in the mist. They're calling my name. Closer. Closer. I can make him out now. It was my master at that evil base.. There's pain in my eyes but I'm glued to them. "Edvard." Lilith shakes my shoulder with her hand firmly. I cannot move. Icy cold holds my hands to the chair. "Vhat is ze matter?" she persists. My mouth is practically glued shut. I blink, frozen in time and space, fixated on the figure in front of me. I fall backwards, eyes dull as if lifeless, still staring ahead. I don't think I'm even me anymore... I wait until Lilith is asleep, and silently open and close the door, slowly walking to the figure. And when I reach him, he cuffs my hands to my back. Realising the trance he's trying to put me in, I kick him in the leg, trying to break free. Two other Black Hands members kick me to the ground, and I stop struggling. "Very good, Doctor. Let's go. We have work to do later. Guards! Put this on the window." He hands them a slip of paper. They stick it to the car window, and then we all teleport, fading like the mist until I can see only darkness. Chapter 5 Xena blinks. "Did you hear that?" she says quickly, and then instantly notices someone has gone missing. She recounts everyone by name. By now, she's woken everyone up, so it's easier. "Maxis, Samantha, An, Kramer, Mom, Dempsey, Nikolai, Takeo. Schuster. Groph... Hmm. Who are we missing?" She wonders aloud. "Richtofen?" Dempsey teasingly replies. Her eyes widen in shock. Everyone jumps out, looking in different directions around the farm for him. An points to fresh boot tracks. "W-well, last night, I woke up to realise he was just...just staring at something in the distance, like in a trance. I tried to wake him up but I couldn't, and assumed he was troubled by a dream. But when I woke up this morning, he was gone. Where could he have gone in one night?" she whimpered to her daughter. "It's okay, Mom. We'll find Fazzer." she said quietly. "Follow the boot tracks!" Dempsey declares. They follow them for about one minute when they find swirling lines on the ground. "Wh-what?" Schuster, who stayed behind, yells, "A found a note! And you won't like it!" Most of them sit down to investigate the swirly mark, as Takeo takes a beaker and extracts some solid 115 from the marks, declaring that Richtofen's teleporter watch invention had done it. However, Richtofen destroyed it long ago. Who would've made another? Schuster reads the note aloud: To whom it may concern, Richtofen is ours now. And he's not coming back. Sorry Lilith and Xena, but if you do try to convince him, it's not going to work. We overdosed him on a mixture of 115 and on VP, so there's no "Father!" or "Edward!" anymore. It's never going to be the same. I have succeeded in suffering you all. Good day, The Black Hands Chapter 6 Xena looked to Lilith. "Mother, we haven't even told him yet." she whispers. "About his other daughter?" Lilith replies quietly. "Yes, Rosemary. We have to have him see her before you return to...erm...heaven." Xena embarrasingly squeaks. Lilith nods, and then looks to Maxis. He shrugs. "And he still doesn't know enough about me. You know, where his twin brother is. He vanished when he was two. Considering that I just learned I was born a Richtofen." he adds. Xena pauses. Her uncle is Maxis? And that makes Samantha...her cousin. Samantha nods as if she's reading her mind. Maybe she is. .::. I bent down, arms tied back to the pole. "Think you can escape, huh!? Think that's funny? The time will come when we control you again, but you will be punished for now." the leader snarls in a raspy voice to my ear. "Too bad your happiness doesn't last. You never even met your own daughter." another chuckles. "I've met Xena, stupid." "Lilith gave another baby for adoption. Rosemary. She's at Honorhall Orphanage. Turning twelve next weekend. And Lilith has her secrets. Xena was 4, I think. And you thought she didn't have anything to hide." he sneers. Rosemary? I have...another daughter? My mind swirls, my head aching, heart pounding. The whip pierces my back again. Flames erupt in me. Something hits me in the eye as a few stones are chucked at me, but I don't fight against it. .::. A Black Hands troup grabs Skye from behind, and drags him into the bushes. "SKYE!" Xena screams, running after him. She parts the bushes, and he's gone. She sniffles briefly, and then fury fills her eyes. Everyone turns away from her, noticing that Nikolai was fading away. The others began to fade, leaving Xena and Edward utterly alone. Kramer pops out of a bush, apple in hand. "Where'd everyone go? I found apples." he groaned, and hops in the right door of the car. She jumped in the other, putting Edward in his seat, and turned the screeching wheels in the direction of the lab where Edward had been kidnapped to. Richtofen was all she had left. That is, if he was alive. .::. Skye is tied to a pole across from me. I see the pain in his eyes. Looks like they cut him up badly, but not as harshly as me. "So...this is where you went to." Skye jokes. I smile at his humor. He's nothing like his father, I thought.They come back in with a needle, and stab it into Skye's arm, pumping a fluid in. "Shtop! Leave him alone!" I suddenly scream, struggling in the rope bounding me here. My arms and back are raw in pain, but I don't leave that as my excuse. I stop struggling and realise they're dragging him away. To become like Nikolai. "He'll murder Xena! Leave him alone!" I screech, but they cannot hear me anymore. "Where's your twin brother? Huh? You really thought he was gone forever, didn't you, Edward?" another member hops off a pedestal, walking towards me, and whips my back twice. CRACK! I wince. "You know, his name was Benjamin." CRACK. More pain. "He's gone...he's been adopted by anozzer family." I hiss through gritted teeth. CRACK. I nearly tumble to the ground. "Well he's not Benjamin anymore. You see, when you were younger, even your parents, like Lilith, had secrets. You both grew up with dark hair and the intense green eyes. Benjamin had a different name, because he was owned by a different family when they found him by the side of the road. They named him Ludvig." he cackled. My eyes widen, but then narrow. He's not suggesting Maxis is my twin, is he!? "Ludvig grew up knowing you were his brother, but he was forbidden to tell you. He went to highschool with you. You barely talked or noticed him. Ludvig Maxis was also your boss. No wonder he treated you and Xena so kindly." he finishes. It's true! No wonder, those times at 935, I thought Maxis was my reflection! I take that back, that's when I had gone mad. B-but...how? I hear a screech of tires, and Xena and Kramer are hopping out of a car. I cough up blood. Kramer shoots the man taunting me. The man collapses to the ground, eyes burning in hatred. "Papa!" Xena screams, and grabs a knife, cutting me loose. I fall to the ground, pain searing everywhere. Today stinks. "Vhere's...everyone else?" I groan. Kramer blinks, letting Edward out of the car. "They're back up there." he replies. My eyes hurt so horribly, but I don't let that bother me. Xena grabs a cloth, pressing it to my bloodsoaked back. "Vhen ve get home, you are going to bed before you go insane again." she joked. Then I heard evil, drunken laughter. Xena looks up. "Skye!? What have they done to you!?" she screams. I cannot move. She runs towards him. "No....Xena! Shtop!" I distantly cry, before I struggle to get up. I plop back down, in pain. "Mommy!" Edward screams, but I see Kramer held him back. Skye grabs a knife, and cuts Xena's throat. "NO!" I jump up, grabbing a pistol off the shelf, and blindly shoot Skye's forehead. He gasps, then stumbles backwards. I had killed him. I killed him! Tears well in my eyes. "Xena!" I wail, running to her side. She's smiling tearily. "Y-you know about Rosemary?" she rasps. "Yes. Now I do." "Please go adopt her. Don't let her suffer. Now you'll have the chance to watch her grow up, not like I suffered because you couldn't see me any further." she whispers. "I-I vill." I stammer, not wanting to listen any further. "Take care of Edward. I love you, papa." she squeaks, eyes rolling back, breathing hoarse. "I love you too." I reply almost silently. She dies, cradled in my arms. And then I see Lilith in her again, dying the same way, crusted in blood. "Kramer, I'll drop you off. Edvard and I...need zome alone time." "Sure, Doc." Kramer replies, eyes fixated on Xena. And we drive away. Everything happened to fast for me. And now the last of my love. Has died. Chapter 7 Edward clutches my hand as we walk up to the horrible orphanage. He knows now. That Xena and Skye are both dead. I see the girls all sitting and drinking tea through the window. All in drab, hand-me-down dresses. They're all gray and dull, yet they seem dreary themselves. What has Lilith done to my daughter? No. I can't blame Lilith. I blame myself for not knowing. I walk up to the counter. A rude receptionist glares at me. "Welcome to the Honorhall Orphanage. Are you making an adoption?" she sneers. I blink. "Yes, I am." I reply bluntly. "Which are you adopting?" she snaps back. "Rosemary." I explain. "Your name?" "Edward Richtofen." She stares at me, as if confused. "Are you..." "Her father. Yes. I am." I growl impatiently. She taps onto a button. "Rosemary, gather your things! You're being adopted." she hisses into the intercom. A young girl, 12 in age, with dark brown hair, and shimmery blue-green eyes, holds a small doll and a small bag with her. She looked sad. "Alright. You may go now. I'm not charging you for adoption." the lady hissed. I smiled. "Follow me, Rosemary." I said, walking towards the door. She was utterly confused, but she followed me. "Who are you?" she asked when we got into the car. "I'm your fazzer." I reply. Her eyes widen. "Xena told me you'd find me!" she squealed. Xena must've volunteered at the orphanage. She found Rosemary first. "And I did. I'm so sorry. If I vould have known, you vould not be in zat terrible place." I explain. "It's not your fault." she replies. I blink. It's not...my fault? For once, I feel joyous. She turns slightly in her seat to say hi to Edward. He smiles. "Hi Rosemary!" he bubbily replies. "Zo vhere is Xena?" Rosemary asks patiently. I cringe, then remember she doesn't know. "Zhe's..zhe's..." I begin. "Momma's dead." Edward finishes for me. I bite my tongue to keep from crying. I stare blankly as I drive, but correctly. I park. "I'll zhow you your room." I say quietly. Xena's gone, and so is Skye. But the two live in Edward. And I have a chance to be a father again. And I think I'm going to enjoy it. ~The End